DATE: Friday, October 10, 1997              TAG: 9710100869

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C2   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: Compiled by STEVE CARLSON, SCOTT HARPER and RICH RADFORD

LENGTH: 187 lines

MICHELOB REPORT

Strange posts 67, figures it'll take more than that

Curtis Strange, Kingsmill's resident touring pro, was just inches from taking a prominent position on the leaderboard when his 20-foot birdie putt at the 18th stopped inches short.

That par gave him a 4-under-par 67, tying him for eighth place after the first round of the Michelob Championship.

Strange, a 17-time winner on the PGA Tour but winless since the 1989 U.S. Open, said he couldn't put a finger on exactly why he played well, but has a strong suspicion that to win this week will take three more similar rounds.

``I played as good from tee to green as I've played in a long, long time,'' Strange said. ``Why? I don't know. I missed a lot of putts out there, but I can't complain. Any time you shoot 4 under in the first round, at least you haven't lost.''

Strange will go off the 10th tee this morning at 8:03 a.m.

Kingsmill's fall fling

Although the weather, sunny with temperatures in the 80s, was not too far from the blast furnace of summertime Michelob tournaments, the course was much different than what the pros were used to at Kingsmill.

``It's a lot firmer, the greens are firmer because in the summertime they've got to keep it so moist to keep them alive,'' Payne Stewart said. ``The golf course is faster, it's a different golf course than we've seen before. It's in great shape. This is when the tournament needs to be.''

``The greens are quite a bit better,'' said Kirk Triplett, who shot an opening-round 66. ``The texture is much better. When we play in July they have to put so much water on them that when you go to fix a ball mark you just get big clumps of grass coming up.

``They're definitely putting faster, and they roll truer because the grass is not as long.''

About that wine collection, Mr. Waldorf

First-round leader Duffy Waldorf when asked the value of his wine collection of about 1,000 bottles:

``I don't like to think about the value of it because once you starting thinking of its worth you start thinking you're an investor. I'm not really a wine investor, I'm a wine consumer.''

Triplett sports new putter, new caddie

Kirk Triplett attributed his round in part to a new Ping putter with a mallet head that he was using for just the second week. He said the last time he changed putters was 2 1/2 years ago.

``I picked this one up, it felt good and well-balanced, and I decided to give it a try,'' Triplett said.

There may have been another factor at work as well. His wife, Cathi, is caddying for him this week, which she does just a couple of times a year.

``You better write down I look forward to it,'' Triplett said when asked if it was a difficult adjustment. ``You write anything else, I'll come looking for you.''

Innovation takes guesswork out of the practice tee

Anyone who has ventured to the practice tee in previous years has found that if you don't know a player by sight, it's hard to figure out who he is.

Caddies inevitably face the players' bags away from the galleries, with the name on the bag facing the fairway.

The anonymity, however, has been eliminated this week.

Each time a player takes his position on the practice tee at Kingsmill, a sandwich board with his name on it is positioned behind him.

``I know a few of these guys, but I wouldn't necessarily know Wayne Levi or Jay Haas without the signs,'' said Col. Frank Grove, who is stationed at Fort Monroe. ``I've been to the Masters and the International, and neither tournament had these signs. They are definitely fan friendly and give you quick recognition.''

Tournament director Johnnie Bender said the sandwich boards are a relatively new idea on the PGA Tour. But agrees it's a good one.

``We're constantly trying to find things that will improve the tournament,'' Bender said. ``My goal every year is to try to find something we can do to out-do what we did the year before.''

Clements starts fast, but finishes slow

Lennie Clements had it going big-time Thursday. The 40-year-old pro from San Diego was 6-under par after just eight holes and shot 30 on the front side.

Then he, and the play, backed up.

Clements said he lost his momentum after having to wait 25 minutes on the 13th tee. When he finally was able to play, his tee shot squirted right, down a greenside cliff, where he ended up scrambling to make a double-bogey 5.

``It played so slow on the back nine,'' Clements said after his round of 5-under 66, still just three shots off the lead.

He described his back nine as ``shaky,'' adding that ``I missed a couple of shots and paid the price for it.''

Only one other player shot a 30 Thursday: Duffy Waldorf, the leader, also on the front nine.

Run, Forrest, Run!

When your last name is Gump, the nickname Forrest is almost unavoidable.

Scott Gump, although he did nothing to earn it, has been called Forrest ever since the Academy Award-winning movie was released. While he thanked the media for not asking any Forrest questions during his formal interview, he said later that he's made peace with the nickname.

``At least it was a good movie,'' Gump said after firing an opening-round 66. ``If he'd been an ax murderer, it might be kind of tough. But he was a likable guy.''

Ups and downs

Dudley Hart withdrew just prior to Thursday's round due to a back strain. Hart injured his back while warming up for Wednesday's pro-am and a trip to the PGA Tour's on-site exercise trailer did not relieve the pain. He was replaced in the field by Gary Hallberg, who responded to his good fortune with a 4-under 67. . . . Jim McGovern, who hails from Old Dominion University, carded a 2-under 69. Of his last 19 rounds, it was only his third in the 60s. the same in the morning as it did in the afternoon. Of the best 30 rounds, 16 came in the morning. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

BILL TIERNAN/The Virginian-Pilot

Curtis Strange sizes up a putt at Kingsmill's 18th green Thursday.

Strange, winless since 1989, shot a 4-under-par 67, tying him for

eighth place.

Graphic

AT A GLANCE

What: The Michelob Championship at Kingsmill, 72-hole golf

tournament

When: Today through Sunday

Purse: $1,550,000; winner's share, $279,000

Field: 156 players

About the field: 26 players in the top 50 on the PGA Tour's money

list are scheduled to play at Kingsmill, including No. 2 money

winner Justin Leonard and defending Michelob Championship titleist

Scott Hoch, who is sixth on the money list.

For more info: 253-3985

TICKETS

Daily grounds passes Daily clubhouse passes:

Today through Sunday: $35 daily.

TELEVISION

Today: ESPN, 1-3 p.m.

Saturday: CBS, 1-3:30 p.m.

Sunday: CBS, 4-6 p.m.

Graphic

MINI-PROFILE

A look at one of the PGA Tour's lesser-known players - but

someone to keep an eye on at this week's Michelob Championship.

STEVE LOWERY Lowery shot a 60 in the final round of last

weekend's Buick Open in Pine Mountain, Ga. Of the round, Lowery

said: ``It was the best round I've ever shot. I was playing so well,

I thought I could birdie in and shoot 58.''

Birthplace: Birmingham, Ala.

Residence: Orlando, Fla.

Exempt status: 80th on 1996 money list.

Tour victories: 1; 1994 Sprint International.

Best 1997 finish: T3; Motorola Western Open, Buick Challenge.

Represents: Callaway, Carlyle clothing, Titleist/Footjoy.

Clubs: Callaway woods and irons, Odyssey putter

Your dream foursome: Jesus Christ, Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson and

me.

Best shot you ever hit under pressure: The 5-iron I hit 227 yards

to two feet of the cup on the 17th hole at the International. They

use the Stableford System there, and I was five points out of the

lead with two holes to play. I made eagle there to draw into a tie

for the lead with Rick Fehr. Then I beat him in a playoff.

Funniest thing that happened to you on the golf course: I was

playing in a pro-am in Orlando several years ago when one of the

amateurs, a guy wearing glasses, hit his shot directly on top of the

ball. It bounced up and smacked him in the forehead, knocking him to

the ground. We were concerned he'd hurt himself until we looked down

and saw him rolling around, laughing.

Favorite sports team, and why: Alabama football, because I was a

student there when Bear Bryant was coach.

What you'd do for a living if you weren't a pro golfer: I have no

idea. I've never wanted to be anything but a pro golfer.

What you do to get away from golf: I spend a lot of time with my

family (wife, Kathryn; children, Kristen and Lauren). And I'm

getting ready to buy a boat to take bass fishing, a favorite hobby

of mine.

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